Filler
Filler is scenes or episodes that appeared in the anime but not the manga, thus separating the manga and anime into slightly different timelines. Some people consider filler to be non-canon, though sometimes evidence or flashbacks are added into scenes that were shown in the manga (such as Gotenks' fight with Buu at Kami's Lookout, when Piccolo (in the anime only) refers to the Garlic Jr. Saga). Filler is found often in Dragon Ball Z, as a means of not getting ahead of the manga, as they are both produced parallel to each other. The Garlic Jr. Saga was likely added due to a delay before the Trunks Saga. List of filler material in Dragon Ball Red Ribbon Army Saga * Several filler episodes involving Colonel Silver and Emperor Pilaf. All of the story concerning Pilaf and the Dragonball is not present in the manga. Fortuneteller Baba Saga * Slightly younger versions of Tien and Chiaotzu are introduced a bit earlier at the end of the Fortuneteller Baba Saga. Here, they are young con-artists who utilize a wild boar-like creature, InoShikaCho, to destroy towns. They then show up at the place and offer their services to "kill" the creature. Goku learns of this scheme and puts an end to it. Piccolo Jr. Saga * On his way to train with Korin, Tien, Chiaotzu, Yamcha and Krillin rescue a village from an active volcano. List of filler material in Dragon Ball Z Vegeta Saga * Opening scene of Dragon Ball Z up until the farmer with shotgun is shown (in episode The New Threat). * Gohan being lost in the woods with the sabretooth tiger up until the point Raditz confronts Piccolo (in episode The New Threat). * The flashback scenes of Saiyans destroying planets and infant Goku being shown sent off to Earth while Raditz explained the Saiyajins ways to Goku (in episode Reunions). * Goku running on Snake Way and deciding to jump instead of running; he misses his landing and almost gets dragged down to Hell by shadowy hands. * Nappa and Vegeta's visit to Arlia (most of the episode Terror on Arlia). * Princess Snake and the whole event about her capturing of Goku (most of the episode Princess Snake). * Gohan transforming a second time into his Ozaru form because of Goku's spacepod holographic proyection of the moon (part of the episode The End of Snake Way). * Gohan meeting the orphans (most of the episode Plight of the Children). * Tien, Chiaotzu, Krillin, and Yamcha going into the Pendulum Room and fighting the Saiyans from the past (most of the episode Pendulum Room Peril). * King Kai's pet Gregory does not exist in manga (but it is one of the characters invented by Toriyama for anime). The whole training phase where Goku has to hit him with a hammer is filler (most of the episode Goku's Ancestors). * King Kai's story about Goku's Saiyan heritage with the Tuffles and the scouter/armor technology (most of the rest of the episode Goku's Ancestors). * Goku training in the desert whilst not yet fully recovered from his injuries. Namek Saga * The entire event of Bulma, Gohan and Krillin traveling towards planet Namek and ending up on a fake planet Namek. Entire event is 100% filler as it's fully absent in the manga. Frieza Saga * When Bulma had her body switched with Captain Ginyu. * The fight between Ginyu Force members Recoome, Jeice, Burter and Guldo and King Kai's students Tien, Yamcha and Chiaotzu, is entirely filler. * Goku's transformation into a Super Saiyan. Like most transformations in the anime, they are dragged out by anime fillers. This transformation is one of the best examples. In the manga, it composed of only a few panels, but in the anime, it lasted for several minutes. * The entire fight between Goku and Frieza is also packed with filler (the infamous 5 minutes that lasted approximately 10-15 episodes). * Gohan returning to fight Frieza after Goku was knocked into a lava pit. In the manga, Goku emerges straight after getting knocked down, but in the anime, Gohan fights Frieza for a good while until Goku re-appears to take over. * The flashback with Vegeta, Nappa and Raditz when they report to Frieza in which it is revealed that Vegeta knew that the destruction of the Saiyan home planet was courtesy of Frieza, and not because of an asteroid impact. Garlic Jr. Saga * This entire saga doesn't appear in the manga and is thus 100% filler. This constitutes of the battle with Garlic Jr, as well as Vegeta's trip in outer space in an attempt to track down Goku. Trunks Saga * The flashback with King Cold looking for Frieza's remains after the destruction of Planet Namek, and Frieza's reconstruction and becoming "Mecha Frieza". Entire sequence is complete filler. * The dialogues between Future Trunks, Frieza and King Cold, as well as the fight, are slightly extended by anime filler, as well as Trunks' Super Saiyan transformation. * After Trunks defeated Frieza and King Cold, they head for the location of Goku's upcoming return. Most of the wait for Goku is composed of filler. * The flashback with after Goku defeated Frieza on Namek, he looks for a way to escape Namek, for example he tracks down Frieza's spaceship and attempts to leave with it, but instead leaves with one of the Ginyu Force Pods. This segment is mostly composed of filler. * The footage of Goku training with Gohan and Piccolo in preparation for the androids' imminent arrival is completely filler. Same goes for Vegeta's training inside the gravity room. The manga only shows footage of them training in a couple of panels. * Piccolo and Goku taking driving lessons, 100% filler event. Androids Saga * During Goku and Android 19's fight, Master Roshi gives Maron (Krillin's girlfriend at the time), a lecture about Goku's history with Dr. Gero and the Red Ribbon Army. This entire event is anime filler. * When the Z-fighters are attempting to find Dr. Gero's laboratory, Krillin runs into Dr.Gero and is subsequently beaten in a fight. Entire event is filler. * During the androids' trip to find Goku, they often stop underway to change their clothes, or other means of "having fun". Most of these sequences in the anime are filler. Imperfect Cell Saga * Cell's search for organic lifeforms is also largely composed of filler. For example, the sequence of Cell showing up at an airport, attempting to drain a mother and her daughter of their bio-mass, which is thwarted by Krillin. * Piccolo and Android 17's fight. Large portions of this fight in the anime are lengthened with anime filler. Perfect Cell Saga * Most of the anime footage of Vegeta and Trunks' training inside the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. In the manga, the only thing we see is the duo entering the room, no actual footage of their training. All training footage in the anime is thus filler. * Gohan's transformation into a Super Saiyan. In the anime, Gohan transforms when he recalls how he let his friends down in the past, additionally stimulated by Goku firing a large Kamehameha at him. * Some of the footage of Goku and Gohan's training on the Hyperbolic Time Chamber is also filler. For example, the sequence in which Goku is seen using the Kamehameha to destroy massive walls of ice towering up in front of him is filler. * Large portions of Goku and Gohan's preparation for the Cell Games is composed of anime filler. * Segments of the fight between Trunks and Cell composes of filler, mainly the segment where Trunks is still able to keep up with Cell and hit him, before he powers up too much. In the manga, Trunks isn't able to lay a finger on Cell. Cell Games Saga * Certain segments of the fight between Goku and Perfect Cell are filler. For example, Cell attacking Goku with Frieza's homing "Kienzan" attack, as well as using Tien's multi-form technique. * Goku's power up is also vastly extended in the anime by fillers. * The fight between "Team Z" and the Cell Jr's is extended in the anime by fillers, for example Vegeta using the Final Flash. * Cell using a double, massive Kienzan on Super Saiyan 2 Gohan. * The fight between Super Saiyan 2 Gohan and Cell's Semi-Perfect Stage, after Cell expelled Android 18 back out. This entire sequence is filler. In the manga, Cell almost immediately decides to self destruct without fighting Gohan in that form. * During the final beam struggle between Gohan and the rejuvenated Perfect Cell. In the anime, Piccolo, Yamcha, Tien, Krillin, and Vegeta repeatedly launch full scale attacks at Cell in an attempt to distract him. In the manga, Vegeta is the only one to attack, which led to Cell's defeat. Great Saiyaman Saga * The events surrounding Goku and his stay in the afterlife, as well as the entire Other World Tournament, is all filler. Babidi Saga * Large portions of the fight between Gohan and Dabura, such as the entire time Gohan fights in his base form, is filler. * Large portions of the Goku vs. Majin Vegeta is also filler, for example the beam struggle. Majin Buu Saga * In the anime, Gohan spends several episodes attempting to free the Z-sword, but in the manga, only needs a few pages. * Goku's Super Saiyan 3 demonstration on Kami's Lookout is filler. * The fight between Gotenks and the fat version of Majin Buu completely filler. In the manga, it is referred to, but not shown. * The fight between Goten, Trunks, and Mr. Popo is completely filler. Fusion Saga * Segments of the fight between Gohan and Majin Buu consist of filler. For example, right after Buu absorbs Gotenks and Piccolo, he and Gohan fight rather evenly. In the manga, Buu almost immediately gains the upperhand whilst in the anime, it takes him some time to establish his dominance. * Super Saiyan 3 Goku's fight with Majin Buu is completely anime filler. In the manga, Buu charges at Goku but immediately reverts back to a lesser powerful state as the Gotenks fusion inside of him wears off. In the anime, Buu toys around with Goku a bit first before he reverts back. * Goku and Vegeta's fight with Majin Buu after he just absorbed Gohan. In the anime, Vegeta first attempts to fight Buu on his own, and Goku reluctantly joins him. After they get beat around for a bit, Vegeta ultimately agrees to join bodies with Goku. In the manga, this fight does not take place. * The fight between Vegito in his base form and Majin Buu. In the manga, Vegito immediately transforms into a Super Saiyan whilst in the anime, he first fights Buu in his normal state. * Large portions of the fight between Super Vegito and Majin Buu is also anime filler. For example, Buu attempting to destroy Vegito's body from the inside, as well as him launching a second wave of kamikaze ghosts whilst in the manga he only uses this attack once, and also his massive barrier with which he attempts to destroy the entire timezone, is all anime filler. * The segments that feature Dabura in the afterlife, joining Videl, Bulma and Chi-Chi on their search for Gohan, are all filler. * Major portions of the action inside of Buu's head is also filler. Examples are Goku and Vegeta encountering the huge worms, as well as them fighting thought forms of Majin Buu in the shape of Gohan, Gotenks and Piccolo. Kid Buu Saga * The footage shown in the anime of Kid Buu fighting the Supreme Kais five million years ago is filler. In the manga it isn't shown, only referenced. * Kid Buu showing up on the Grand Kai's planet is completely filler. This goes for the vast majority of the Other World footage in the anime too, most of this is filler. * Goku and Vegeta powering up to lure Buu to the world of the Kai's. In the manga, no power up is performed as Buu finds the Saiyans immediately after he regenerated from Earth's explosion. * The fight between Super Saiyan 2 Goku and Kid Buu is completely filler. In the manga, Goku goes straight to Super Saiyan 3 where in the anime, he goes Super Saiyan 2 first. Appearances in the Budokai Tenkaichi series For some reason, Atari seems to avoid putting filler characters in the Budokai and Budokai Tenkaichi series of video games, ignoring several requests from fans to put the Spice Boys in a game. The only two filler characters to appear in any of these games are Garlic Jr. and Pikkon, both of whom appeared in Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2 and Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3. However, they also both appeared in movies (Garlic Jr. in Dead Zone and Pikkon in Fusion Reborn, and there are several other movie-exclusive characters in the games. In spite of this, their character bios detail their appearances in the anime, and Garlic Jr.'s saga in Tenkaichi 2 is based on the anime, not the movie. Also, the Other World Tournament is a tournament in some of the games, and a few other filler scenes are mentioned in character bios, such as the scene where King Cold begs Trunks for his life.